Information about Somerset Waste Board

The Somerset Waste Partnership has been
working since 1992; the partner authorities are Somerset County
Council, Sedgemoor, South Somerset, Mendip and West Somerset
District Councils, and Taunton Deane Borough Council. For further
information on the Waste Partnership please use the following
weblink: http://www.somersetwaste.gov.uk

In October 2007, Somerset became the first
countywide area to combine waste service functions under a single
joint committee, called the Somerset Waste Board, which comprises
two Councillors from each of the six Somerset local
authorities.

The Somerset Waste Board meets at least
quarterly on a Friday morning and at a venue in the Taunton area.
Further details can be found on the agendas for the next
meeting.

The Board meetings are open to the public and
at every meeting there is an opportunity for public questions,
statements or petitions to be presented. Please contact the meeting
administrator for further details on how to submit a question to
the Board.

When major decisions are to be discussed or
made, these are published in the Waste Board's Forward Plan, in so
far as they can be foreseen.

Below
are some of the specific functions and activities of the Waste
Board - a full list and further information can be found in their
Constitution.

Manage the Principal Contracts for the delivery of an integrated
waste management service across the County of Somerset in so far as
such service relates to all or any of the areas of the Partner
Authorities through the Single Client Group;

Act
in accordance with such directions as are given by the County
Council from time to time in respect of Landfill Allowances Trading
Scheme (LATS) including any trading to be undertaken;

Approve and implement the Business Plan;

Approve and implement the Annual Action Plan;

Seek
to influence and advise central government on waste and recycling
policies;

Commission research and associated public opinion surveys etc.
on waste and recycling;

Ensure that the legal and statutory functions delegated to it by
the Partner Authorities are being discharged
effectively;

Ensure that a strategic policy for waste and recycling across
the County of Somerset is formulated and approved;

Assist the Partner Authorities in meeting their respective
responsibilities.